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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. stem — to come from
  5. game — a match
  6. content — happy
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. root — of a plant
  9. fall — to drop
  10. object — to protest
  11. root — the cause
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. game — wild animals
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to click
  16. object — an aim
  17. root — of a word
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. fall — to drop
  20. content — the amount
  21. bulb — for light
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. fall — the season
  24. object — a thing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com